All Things Olympus

Hello from H2 Photographic Society

Last night we were treated to an evening with Clare Harvey-May of Olympus. Clare has been in the photographic industry for a long time and has a wealth of experience and knows everything there is to know about the Olympus system.

Clare took a whole range of questions from the very basic to very obscure and answered them all in an informative and interesting way over or skype session.

Clare runs the Pro loan scheme for Olympus and if you are interested you can apply to use their loan kit here: https://www.olympus-imagespace.co.uk/test-drive/ be warned though you may end up selling all your heavy SLR gear ;)

Generously Clare offered to deal with further questions and issues via email and her email address is Clare.Harvey-May@olympus.co.uk.

Next week will be a tutorial from Heather on flower photography and a guide to Flickr.

Bathroom 2 by Jeff Sinclair
(1st place)

"Winner Stays On" Competition - and the winner is:

Last week's theme was "Bathroom", chosen by Jo (Cleall), and during last night's meeting, Jo announced the winners. Once again, there were plenty to choose from the many creative images that members had uploaded to the H2 Flickr page. So in reverse order (to keep the suspense going): in third place was Dave (Hobbs) with "In the Bathroom 2"; in second place was Paul (Major) with "Bathroom 2"; and in first place - drum-roll, please, was Jeff (Sinclair) with his image also called "Bathroom 2". You can see their images above and below.

As the competition name implies, the winner stays on and Jeff has chosen next week's theme as simply: "Time", and he will judge the entries next Thursday to pick the winner. Once again, we are look forward to seeing what our members' creative interpretation make of this week's theme. Members, please entitle your entries "Time" (numbered 1, 2, etc., if entering more than one), and upload them to our H2 Flickr page.

Bathroom 2 by Paul Major
(2nd place)

Having trouble viewing this email? Open the web version.

Hello! Are you a camera club member? If so, this message – and exclusive offer – is just for you

I do hope you and your camera club colleagues are faring well in these challenging times. We know most clubs have stopped meeting face to face and aim to start up again for the new season in September. This leaves us with a dilemma as we have been sending multiple copies to chairpersons homes for distribution during camera club gatherings.

During this period of lockdown and uncertainty, we would like to offer UK camera club members a free monthly copy of Photography News sent direct to them. Please can you inform all your camera club colleagues about this offer and if individuals wish to take us up on it, all they have to do is email hello@bright-publishing.com with ‘PN free offer’ and their club’s name in the subject line. They will be then added to the mailing list.

To receive the next issue, members must email us by 14 April to ensure they are put on the mailing list in time. They will then receive every subsequent issue on a monthly basis by post, until we return to some semblance of normality.

Just to confirm, members’ details will only be used for this free PN offer during this difficult period and will not be used for any form of marketing or passed on to any third party. Please note, this offer is for UK camera club members with UK addresses only. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me a line.

Your sincerely,

Will Cheung, Editor

CLICK TO EMAIL

In the Bathroom 2 by Dave Hobbs
(3rd place)

SOME PERSONAL THOUGHTS ON TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS

The way I take photographs can be summed up under three general headings: serendipity, computer generated and pre-visualised.

Serendipity: this is when I go out with my camera with no pre-visualised ideas of what I’m after taking. Examples are holidays, day trips or just having a camera with me at all times. And, I will take what I fancy; what takes my interest - happenstance photography, really.

Computer generated: this is not a literal heading because all my images are put through a computer to a greater or lesser degree. Let me explain myself. I mean the times when I will have seen a particular computer process that takes my fancy; in a magazine, or online (YouTube, probably) or have been shown the process by a friend, perhaps. I will then use the filters and special effects within my photo-manipulation software to produce what the computer algorithms generate. Basically I get what the computer wants to give me.

Pre-visualised is where I have a clear-cut idea for an image and will endeavour to create it. I have a ”target” to aim for; planning and thinking before I ever pick up my camera to take the image or images. I find it keeps me in control of my creativity and, with photo-manipulation software, I can have an infinite number of ideas - the only limit is my imagination. An excellent chance to use pre-visualised photography is with our current “Winner Stays On” competition, where we have been given a theme or subject, from which we can create an image.

The question I am asking myself at the moment is which of these three, if any, makes me a “better” photographer - or gives me more pleasure - or makes my photography more fun. True, I enjoy all three but with the present restrictions due to the coronavirus “lockdown”, I am finding the pre-visualising an image and then having the time to concentrate on creating it. Of course some of my photography does blur the lines between two headings: street photography, for example is a type of “targeted serendipity”. Oh well, back to the drawing board.

Paul Major

New Members Welcome

Our club's mission is to provide photographic guidance, stimulation and opportunity; we'd love you to join us.

To contact H2PS click here